Tales From The Cache

TFTC is very much in early access at my time of writing. However, the developers are making great progress and responding to bug reports when reported despite being a small independent team. It’s amazing what a small group of determined people can do when they set their sights on a common goal. There are many things I like about this game. For starters, gadget caches inspired by well known cache hiders; West Virginia Tim and Baker6Clan. These caches are interactive, fun, and frustrating just like the real-world equivalent. (Except in game, cacher's can’t just bust the lock because they lack patience and just want to sign the log.) From what I have been able to work out through their Discord, the developers are creating a cache puzzle engine of sorts (for lack of a better term) which should make it possible for the developers to create many unique gadget caches and really flesh out the world once they have finished the map. Speaking of map… This world is amazingly detailed! It’s a pleasure to explore. In fact, I find myself wandering around in the game during the “Golden Hour” taking screenshots as if I was some sort of virtual photographer on holiday. The map is also 100% custom made, including custom 3D models made from photos taken by the developer. Talk about a personal touch! As you would expect with an early access game, the game mechanics are not fully fleshed out yet. While there are caches that you can find, you cannot yet sign the log, or trade swag items. Things that I believe are coming soon’ish. There is a skeleton of a skill tree system in place, a pilotable drone, a ridable motorcycle, and CITO mechanic that awards points for picking up trash. Most of these mechanics are at varying degrees of completeness at the moment, and I am really looking forward to playing with them once they are finished. If I had to be critical of anything, it would be the lack of focus on completing the core game. There are several incomplete features in the game. I wish the developers would focus on core features and functionality first, deferring new, less important functionality for a later release. Overall, I think the developers are doing an amazing job creating a game that geocacher's are going to enjoy playing when they can’t be out geocaching. TFTC certainly brings the excitement of exploring and the thrill of finding a cache to the game space. If you enjoy geocaching, you will absolutely enjoy this game, even in early access. And it’s only going to get better as the game progresses.

Update: Sadly this game seems abandoned. However it´s very cheap now so you might get your moneys worth if you can accept that there will be no more new content. I was looking for a Geochaching game for a long time. This is a good start for an Early Access game. Looks good, runs fine and you can already find some stashes. The puzzles to open these are interesting too. I would like to see a more urban location too but in any case this looks promising.

Great start, nice graphics, keep going :)!

Proud of you, brother d:

The game has interesting potential and an original idea that really caught my attention at the beginning. Unfortunately, in its current state, it is significantly unfinished and needs necessary fixes – in this form, it is practically unplayable and perhaps should not even be released. These are not minor bugs, but critical errors that make it impossible to progress through the game. The very first cache triggers a FATAL ERROR message and the game crashes immediately, which looks extremely unprofessional. The GPS system is NOT WORKING – most of the time, only the introductory wallpaper is displayed, and only when the mouse is moved precisely does a map with caches appear for a fraction of a second. The screen flashes constantly and it is impossible to navigate it. Another major problem is with the third cache, which is in a tree trunk. It is MISSING an interactor, so it cannot be picked up at all. At this point, I lost the desire to continue because I am afraid that it is not even possible to finish the game. It's a SHAME because the idea has potential, but the technical state of the game completely buries it, and without extensive repairs, it cannot be recommended. If these issues were fixed, I would play and enjoy the game.

(Early Access at the time of this review) Great effort by a small developer. The game lets you roam atmospheric woodland and get in to geocaching activities. Loved that the puzzles were inspired by a real life alternatives already used in this sport, most of them were engaging and unique. If you are a fan of puzzle/ exploration games, this is a good "catch". The game still needs a bit of polishing, but I can't wait for the full version to come out!

First of all for transparency I know the developer personally but I bought the game with my own money and no pressure from the dev. The game is a fun little experience. Managed to beat the game in an hour and a half. But I heard that after this review there will be updates expanding the game so it's worth coming back from time to time if you enjoyed the puzzles (witch I did very much). I never tried geo caching myself but it seams like a good representation of it because of the realism and ambience of the world. Of course this game like any other solo dev game has some bugs, at points the proceduraly generated foliage is noticeable. And I ran into one game breaking bug (but I wont say what because apparently it'll be fixed on the next update tomorrow). But if the trailer intrigued you or you're a fan of geo caching I highly recommend trying it out. You'll be supporting a dev that really cares about this subject matter.

Very good game but has loads of bugs my characters bugs out sometimes i cant run and on the bunker geocache the code doesnt work dont know if i put the code in wrong but i know morse code im 100% sure i was right the rest i didnt decide to do due to it will take ages to walk over to the other side of the lake

I like the game very cool, but there are some floating trees and rocks. Sometimes you can't through them, but all in all its a great game. You can go geocaching without leaving your home. I can't wait to see what comes next. Also I wish you could sign your own name or at least your user name because I think you sign it as ninja pizza. It be cool if it was VR compatible. I'm glad I got the game it fun but it will never be like the real thing. It is in early access so there will be more to come.

Immediately after the first geocache in the parking lot, when removing a branch from the stump, a notification appears the UE4-TFTC Game has crashed and will..... Fatal error and the game crashes. Nothing really works properly in this game. He refuses to pick up some caches. You find 10 caches, you save the game. you continue later, no more discoveries 2. etc